Carmen Schreiber

Spanish Second Hour

Alternate assignment

Guinea Ecuatorial

Carmen Schreiber

Spanish 2 hour

Alternate Assignment

Guinea Ecuatorial

History

In 1968 Guinea Ecuatorial gained independence after 190 years of being ruled by the Spanish. TeodoroObiangNguemahas ruled for over two centuries. He took power from his Uncle and president MacíasNguemain 1979. Guinea Ecuatorial is a large oil producer; it is the third largest oil producer in Africa. Although they have a growing GDP not a lot of the money being made from producing oil goes to the people who live there. In 1472 the island, off the coast of Guinea Ecuatorial was discovered by a Portuguese navigator by the name of Fernão do Pó. The island came to be known as Fernando Po. During 1879 Fernando Po was used as a jail settlement for inmates deported from Cuba. Independence was proclaimed in the year 1968. Since elections were held in 1968 there had to be a winner, the first president was Francisco MacíasNguema. Francisco MacíasNguema made it clear to the people of Guinea Ecuatorial he intended to rule with an iron fist. In 1972 Francisco MacíasNguema makes a new constitution making it so that he was ruler for life. In 1973 he takes full control of Guinea Ecuatorial, he takes all radio, news papers and changes the name of Fernando Po to; MacíasNguema. In 1979 when MacíasNguema falls from power the name of Fernando Po, or MacíasNguema is changed yet again to; Bioko. There has been many different points in Guinea Ecuatorial’s existence, many that have helped it and are still helping it shape how it is and will be.

Carmen Schreiber

Spanish 2 Hour

Alternate Assignment

Guinea Ecuatorial

The Culture of Guinea Ecuatorial

The culture name of Guinea Ecuatorial is; Equatorial Guinean or Equatoguinean. The official language of Guinea Ecuatorial is Spanish. When Guinea Ecuatorial was just starting out as a Spanish colony it was known as Spanish Guinea, not Guinea Ecuatorial. There are two main cultural/ethnic groups there, the Fang, and the Bubi. The Fang are from the mainland, and the Bubi hail from Bioko. Even though Spanish is the official language most of everyday at home speaking is done in tribal languages. Greetings are very important and usually lengthy at social events. Most greetings involve shaking hands and standing close together. Old people, professionals and people of authority are treated with respect. Most stories are passed orally, rather than being written down. There are many myths and legends passed from generation to generation to preserve the history of the tribes or to explain natural phenomenon. Most of the foods in Guinea Ecuatorial come from the native tribes. Most recipes are plant based with cassava, plantains, and yams. Cassava, sweet potatoes, yams, plantains, leafy greens, bananas, mangoes and coconuts are in most dishes in Guinea Ecuatorial cuisine. The water and milk in Guinea Ecuatorial need to be boiled before drinking; it is a good idea to handle your own fruit and vegetables before consumption. Many of the people in Guinea Ecuatorial are poor, many of the high status jobs are held by people of the Fang tribe. In the poor parts of Guinea Ecuatorial it is normal for people to wear the brightly colored clothes from Western Africa. Even though the legal working age is 18, children still work on farms and street vend. Many jobs are performed by inmates at prisons. The inmates work inside and outside of the prisons they are held in.

Carmen Schreiber

Spanish 2 Hour

Alternate Assignment

Guinea Ecuatorial

Tradition

One of the traditions is a ritual called abira, which involves music and dance, and is still practiced by Bubi villagers. In this ritual one of the Bubi villagers place a pot of water at the entrance of the village and he asks for protection for the people, from good spirits, when remembering the dead, a Bubi villager place amulets, hundreds of meters outside the village. Dance and music have religious importance, and meaning to natives. Myths and legends are a part of native tradition, and culture. Women are still treated as second class citizens, many women have 1/5 the amount of schooling a man does. Most women still work in the house and it is unusual to find, a women working a typically male only job. Women are allowed to buy, sell, and trade legally, but they own very little of their own possessions. Spousal violence is not uncommon. Polygyny is common amongst the Fang, and the husband usually gives a dowry to the family of the bride. Once the bride is married to the groom she is generally part of the groom’s family. If the marriage breaks up the wife has an obligation to return the dowry. The husband keeps the kids if they were born during wedlock any child born out of wedlock stays with the woman. Inheritance usually goes to the oldest male child even though it’s legal for women to own property, women rarely get anything. The Fang are allowed to marry outside the

Carmen Schreiber

Spanish 2 Hour

Alternate Assignment

Guinea Ecuatorial

clan, whereas the Bubi marry inside the clan, in the olden days they were allowed to marry there brother or sister as long as they didn’t have the same mother.

Bibliography

I want to sight the sources I used for helping me find information on Guinea Ecuatorial. I found information on the culture, history, and traditions.